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Composers and Authors

Eternity's Sun Rise (Blake)

By John Peterson

Regular price $35.00 Sale

A cycle of five songs for mezzo-soprano and piano

Texts from the writings of William Blake
composed 1995

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        Recorded by Wendy Dixon and David Miller on  Australian Song Cycles Vol 1  (Wirr036) available online

         ISMN M720060941
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        Fabulous Beasts

        By John Peterson

        Regular price $80.00 Sale

        Bb Clarinet, cello and piano, c.10'00

        The music is inspired by two mythical creatures:  Chimera and Cerberus - composite creatures where their bodies are made up of different parts taken from different animals. In the first movement Chimera is constantly in conflict with itself - its movements and personality being pulled in different directions. In the second movement, Cerberus, being a more noble beast with three heads working together in order to become a much more efficient and fearful creature.  Commissioned by David Rowdon and the Sydney Omega Ensemble.  Composed 2012


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        ISMN 9790720126944
        $60.00 for instant PDF download  score and parts Buy Now

        Five Bagatelles

        By John Peterson

        Regular price $30.00 Sale

        . Bb Clarinet solo, total: c.14'00. Advance grade

        These five short pieces were written in order to explore the wide range, the versalitity and agility, and also the expressive qualities of the Bb clarinet. Composed 2009


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        ISMN 9790720106380

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        Five Islands

        By John Peterson

        Regular price $25.00 Sale

        5 pieces for solo piano, c.12'00.  Grades 7 to 8

        Inspired by five islands off the coast of Wollongong.  Dedicated to Peter Sculthorpe. 
        Composed 2001

        Recorded by John Martin on the CD, Ancient Rivers (Wirr 006) available online


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        ISMN M720060958
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        Illawarra Dances

        By John Peterson

        Regular price $80.00 Sale

        Mandolin Orchestra, c.7'30

        The music is in two main sections constructing melodies out of short repetitive fragments with energetic rhythmic ostinato patterns. Rhythmic impetus is one of the principal elements in Illawarra Dances. The rhythmic devices employed include the use of additive rhythms (alternating bars of 11/8 and 13/8) in the second main section of the piece that, along with the syncopated rhythms in the first section, continually propel the music along.
        Composed 2009


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        ISMN 9790720093901

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        Illawarra Music

        By John Peterson

        Regular price $300.00 Sale

        Three movements for orchestra, c.16'30.  

        The central section of Illawarra Music was inspired by the presence of the Pacific Ocean and of Lake Illawarra. The music is a nocturne, associated with the visual image of the moonlight reflected in the waters, and of the night-time gradually becoming day as the sun rises - very quiet at the beginning scored only for harp, piano and keyboard percussion, and gently ebbs and flows, making use of repetitive melodic cells that are grouped in five-bar phrases. As the music progresses, it continues to build, slowly but inexorably, adding more and more instruments to the texture, growing subtly louder and louder until it reaches a climax representing the full rays of the morning sun being reflected in the waters of the lake and the ocean.  Composed 2000

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        ISMN 9790720140315
        $190.00 for instant PDF download score and parts (302 pages)  Buy Now

        Imaginary Perspectives

        By John Peterson

        Regular price $80.00 Sale

        Violin and piano, c.23'30
        Five Movements:

          • From Above, c.4'20
          • From Below, c.5'30
          • From Afar, c3'30
          • From the Heart, c.5'00
          • From an Odd Angle, c.5'00
          Composed 2019

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          ISMN 9790720226538

          $60.00 for instant PDF download score and parts (90pages) Buy Now 

          Immortal Spark, The

          By John Peterson

          Regular price $90.00 Sale

          Double SATB chorus, percussion, string orchestra and piano, c.8'00.

          Text by Henry Van Dyke, Violet Jacob and Andrew Marvel. Written for the Sydney Philharmonia.
          Composed 2013

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          ISMN 9790720140308 

          $70.00 for instant PDF download score and parts (118 pages)  Buy Now

          Impressions of Shanghai

          By John Peterson

          Regular price $20.00 Sale

          Piano solo, c.4'00.  Grade AMus

          This is a short work inspired by the modern skyline of the Chinese city of Shanghai. The music falls into two parts: in the first part the music is relatively slow-paced and mostly made up of chords built out of fourths, and the second part of the piece the music is fast-paced with melodic contours that rise and fall across a wide range of the keyboard.  Composed 2010


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           ISMN 9790720106397

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          In the Twilight (piano 4 hands)

          By John Peterson

          Regular price $25.00 Sale

          Piano four hands, c.4'40. 

          In the Twilight attempts to capture the enervated and sometimes lethargic qualities inherent in a sunny late afternoon, as the day begins to give way to the night. There is an effortless and easy flow to music in the opening section, evoking the warmth of the sun and its slow and steady but inevitable movement towards the western horizon. The middle section, set in the Aeolian minor mode on C, is almost dream-like: a simple and languorous melody floats across rhythmically active but delicate bass figurations that provide subtle counterpoint to the main melody. There is beauty in the moment, but also some regret as we realise the sun is disappearing and the day ending. Thus, in the final section, the music returns to that of the opening of the piece, although the main melody now rhythmically set to the rhythm of a waltz: it is as if, drunk on the effects of the last warmth of the sun, we dance briefly in a wistful manner to celebrate the moment. The outer sections of this piece feature the Lydian mode, one of my personal favourites when composing: the key features of this mode are the major 3rd, augmented 4th, and major 7th degrees of the scale, all of which, for me, provide added poignancy to the music.

          Recorded on Incantations by Jeanell Carrigan, available online

          Composed 2023

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          ISMN 9790673144187
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          Incantations

          By John Peterson

          Regular price $60.00 Sale

          10 pieces for piano solo.  Advanced level of difficulty

          Incantations is a set of ten evocative piano pieces that are intended to be musical representations of a variety of experiences taken from everyday life. While the concept for each piece originated in experiences from my own life, I do feel the essence of these experiences is something common enough to be recognisable, and thus able to be appreciated, by almost everyone.

          Why the title ‘Incantations’? An ‘incantation’ is usually understood to be a type of formula that can be either spoken, sung or chanted, and which is intended to have a magical effect on a particular person (or even on particular objects), and it can also be something that is performed during ceremonial rituals or prayers. I think that music, in general, has many of these same qualities: music of all styles and genres can affect us personally in vividly evocative, deeply emotional, and sometimes even in remarkable and unexpected ways and, as such, I feel music can have a type of ‘magical’ or transformative effect upon us as individuals. Thus, for me, these piano pieces have an evocative power much like the inherent power of an incantation. I have also chosen to interpret the word ‘incantation’ as referring to a melody, or a melodic fragment, that is repeated not only in order to enhance its effectiveness, but also to support the generative qualities that enable its mystical powers. Thus, I have grouped these ten disparate pieces under the singular title of ‘Incantations’ because they are all based, in one form or another, on quite small amounts of melodic material that is not only repeated but is also constantly varied and expanded upon within a variety of melodic, harmonic and rhythmic contexts.

          • 1.  Performing a Solemn Ritual, c.3'20
          • 2.  Falling Under a Spell (Enchantment), c.4'05
          • 3.  Riding the Waves, c.3'35
          • 4.  Entering the Great Cathedral, c.3'55
          • 5.  Running the Gauntlet, c.4'20
          • 6.  Amid the Chaos:  an Invocation, c.3'30
          • 7.  City of Industry, c.4'40
          • 8.  Across the Oceans (Deep and Blue), c.5'20
          • 9.  In the Twilight, c.4'10
          • 10.  Rush Hour, c.4'30

          Composed 2022

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           ISMN 9790673141544

          $50.00 for instant digital download (100 pages) Buy Now

          Incantations - CD

          By John Peterson

          Regular price $25.00 Sale

            Jeanell Carrigan (piano)

            Piano music by John Peterson

             70 minutes of delightful, evocative, well crafted piano music by an internationally renowned and confident composer and responded to in sensitively to colour and mood with such musical intuition.

          Wirr 116   
                                

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          Incantations (2022)

          Five Islands (2001)

          Pacific Ocean Blue (2001)

          Moon-Struck (2018)


          Sheet music and samples are available for all these works online

          Digital downloads of complete tracks from your preferred streaming sites available here